The presentation I prepared and gave yesterday (summarizing 250 pages of boring detail into 15 pages of FASCINATING information) KICKED ASS.  I so rock.  Word even got back to my manager about it and he sent me a thank you note.  Yay!  I celebrated with a glass of wine last night.  Mellow :)

My pal JT was induced in the middle of the night and so a new baby should be greeting the world sometime today!  Woot!  Congrats!

This weekend will be "finally get ready for the holiday" with list-making, shopping, and so on.  What, it's not the LAST minute, that'll be next weekend ;)  There's still plenty of time! 

Sweetsue http://sweetsue.tblog.com/" title="http://sweetsue.tblog.com/" target="_blank"http://sweetsue.tblog.com/ has some great guy-ideas today ... or I should say, some good GIFT ideas for guys... and it reminded me of this:

One Christmas, I got my Dad 3 rolls of duct tape - blue, red, and yellow.  He uses the stuff on EVERYthing so I figured he might as well have a little color.  Unfortunately, I forgot that he's color-blind so ... lets just say things were a bit creative. 

Another year I got him a miter box.  I don't know why, he may have mentioned it along the way or maybe I just figured he didn't have one.  Apparently he had fun practicing mitering - now no one mentions it and the miter box hasn't been seen since.  I'm too afraid to ask. 

Unfortunately, I'm stuck on this year's gift.  He's retired and is really enjoying not doing anything.  Though he did say he might want to take up a new hobby... 

Happy St. Nicholas day, for one.. and... Happy Birthday to me! Woo! I made it! and.. um... I'm 28 today! That's it, I'm 28!

**EDIT** Hey, this thing has paid off already - Katie was doing her usual balking at getting dressed this morning and I said "honey, it's my birthday.  Could you please get dressed without giving me such a hard time?" and when I came back in the room she was ready!  Well blow me down! 

I could KINDA sorta understand how an older man with Parkinson's might not see a gold-colored van coming right at him in broad daylight.  KINDA.  But this morning, some ASS in a white car damn near ran me and Katie off the road - in our BRIGHT RED car.  Fuckin hell.  Do I have a target on my ass?  STOP TRYING TO HIT ME! 

Katie and I were heading south on a narrow 2 lane road (1 lane each direction) when this goober pulls out to also head south.  For a few seconds, we were SIDE BY SIDE in one lane!  What the FUCK.  I went a few feet off the edge of the road and floored it to scoot around them.  Thank God for the new car because it's small and quite maneuverable.  Fuckin' hell!!

Katie freaked and started to cry "now we have to go to the hospital and back to the car store and..." no no no dear. Mama got us out of this one, we're ok.  We're ok. 

So about a mile down the road, it opens up to 2 lanes and the assbag pulls up next to me.  Know why he didn't see me? coz the cocksucker didn't bother to clear his fucking windows this morning - they were still covered in ice from SATURDAY'S ice storm.  SATURDAY.  Bloody fucking fuck of the fuck fuck!  None of which I say outloud with my baby in the car.  But I DID say "ya know how I don't like using the word Stupid about people?  Well this time, I think it fits.  It's just stupid to drive a car when you can't see out the windows."  She agreed and pointed her finger at them out the window to shame him (hopefully a GOOD finger).

Sorry this is long but I'm a wee bit pissed!  I get K to daycare.  We walk around the car to assure her there are no "boo-boo's" because she told me she heard a crash :( No, dearie, all is ok.  We get in the door and I realize - Monday.  Pillow and blanket.  They're back home in the laundry basket.  Sigh.  I get her in and head back home.  Meanwhile, I phone a friend and spout expeletives for awhile.  God bless you, dear :)

I get home and pick up her stuff and on the way back, I look at the section of road where the near-accident happened.  The part of the road where I veered to the right to dodge? It's the ONLY section of the road that HAS a birm.  The rest is all ditch.  ALL DITCH.  I started shaking again.  Bloody hell.

I shivered for quite awhile.  Then I put some Take 6 in the cd player and sang I L-O-V-E YOU loudly at least 2 times through (it's a religious thing) and felt much better.  I thanked my guardian angel for pulling double-time.  Now I'm sitting in my office, listening to my birthday present from Wales.  Ya crazy bastard, I never know what to expect.  Imagine if you will, 70's Partridge family style music only in Welsh.  *hugs for Andrew* La la la la la la is the same in either language, in case you were wondering ;)

So that's been my Monday morning.  It's just now 10 a.m.  *gulp*